© AFP

On 16 October, Neymar scored twice in a 4-0 victory for Brazil over Japan in a friendly match in Poland before flying home that same night to make his 200th appearance for Santos – at the tender age of 20 – the very next day, when he once again scored a crucial goal. It was just the next in a long line of achievements for this Brazilian prodigy in 2012, including two goals and three assists against Bolivar and a hat-trick against Internacional in the Copa Libertadores. He was also part of the Brazilian team that won silver at the Olympic Games in London, scoring three goals and creating another four, but even he could not prevent Brazil slipping to defeat against Mexico in the final.